Blue frost
by RebMed
Summary: Story about Georgia and Pangle, based on the events prior to their encounter with Ada and Ruby. From the perspective of a new character.
1. Chapter 1

Lux had been lying on her watching spot for an hour straight. She had prepared it by cleaning all the snow from the patch of land, which was not too frozen yet, and covering it with some blankets. But it was not enough to protect her from the cold. Since she hadn't moved in a while, her body went wreck and freezing, and she had starved for the last three days. The only thing that kept her focused on her mission was this fat rabbit she had spotted a while ago, and now Lux smiled because it was approaching the knot she had carefully tied.

'It's really fat', she thought. 'It may be a pregnant female. I am a monster'. But even monsters have to eat.

That had been undoubtedly the hardest winter since the war began. It became harder when she and her family had to leave the horse farms due to the hunger: if they had to feed the animals, there was even less for them. It went worse when her father died from pneumonia and her siblings decided to move away and try luck on their own. Then she moved with her sister Sarah, but even she had asked her, sorrowfully, to sell her shotgun and try and bring some food for the family, including the kids. 'How exactly?' She had tried to ask, after selling it.

'And now I'm late for dinner, if there is', she wondered now, upset. The Sun was totally wrapped in grey clouds, and anyway it hadn't heated the ground at all that day. "And you bloody ball of fur won't fall in the trap, will you".

But the rabbit was about to jump into the thin rope, the whitest she had found, so it couldn't be told apart from the snow, and Lux saw it like it was already roasted.

However, her rabbit ran away, distracted by a blasting shot, and a guy screaming "Woohooo!", thinking he had killed it, and his friend mocking him, "That vermin is as hard to kill as you, bastard".

Lux turned mad.

"You idiots, it was mine already! It's gone and it's your fault!". She shouted, too loud.

The boys were in total shock. They hadn't seen a lonely woman in years. Indeed they had barely seen a woman in years.

"I don't know who you are, but don't worry!, Mr. Teethy ain't gonna argue with my knife. I'll bring it to you in a moment. That way we're set."

Lux realised she had just insulted two strangers she could not see from her hiding place, they were armed, unlike her, and she was over an hour away from her sister's house. It was getting really dark, and she didn't even know the area she had moved to, a month before.

"I'm sorry Sir, you win. I'm leaving!". She stood up and shook the snow from her clothes, pulled the rope backwards and rolled it in, and gather her things together to run away at that second. But the two guys had already approached her. One was big, enormous, somewhat too big for that time. Unexplainable, that was the word. And his face didn't explain anything either, it just didn't look intelligent at all. But he was smiling, that was a slight relief. The other one, shorter but still very tall, thinner, carrying a huge shotgun on one hand and her beloved rabbit on the other, and wearing a Northern Army coat, spoke to her hiding his eyes with his expensive hat.

"Good evening lady, here's your dinner. Congratulations on your knot, you deserved the victory".

She just couldn't answer.

"In fact, I haven't seen a snare like that in ages". He gave the shotgun to his friend and lifted his hat, showing an intense, dark gaze, too dark for his snow white complexion. "So you must have come from the mountains".

"Y-yeah, that's right". All the remaining blood on her body had climbed to her cheeks. "We were horse farmers in Indiana, but now I'm living here with my sister, and I must leave now, she's waiting for me".

"I hope your sister's home is not so far as your home town, but the thing is that we don't know any cottages in some miles around, do we?". He turned to his buddy. "No, we don't", the big guy replied.

"They live at the back of the valley, next to Black Rooster's Bridge."

Lux was shaking so much that the rabbit she was holding from its ears began to dance. The stranger got worried for her gaunt, blue face, and her long, skinny fingers.

"That's way too far for you, Miss. You're coming with us and we'll take you to your house tomorrow morning. Where's your horse?"

"I had to sell it", she lied. "Listen, I'm thankful for your offer, but... ". She looked at her lack of choices and her inability to stand on her own feet for longer.

"OK, I'll go with you. My name is Lux".

"His name is _Georgia_ ", the fatty friend laughed. "That's a strange name for a person, _doncha_ think".

'Strange and suspicious for a Northern Soldier in Kentucky, actually'. She thought but didn't dare to say.

"OK, you can call me whatever you want." He helped her getting on his horse. "My loyal pal is called _Pangle_ , though he forgets sometimes"

"Pleased to meet you", muttered Lux, as she gently caressed the back of the horse she was on.

A big, scarlett stain froze on the snow, where the rabbit had been killed. It was February, 1862.


	2. Chapter 2

There were no houses around the area, as they all three knew, but there was _somewhere_ the boys were taking her. She began to feel better, a bit warmer for being rolled up in dry blankets they gave her, and the heat of the horse she was on... and the back of the guy in front of her. Also having her pocket knife held tight made her feel safe. Then, ten minutes after leaving the woods, they reached a tiny cottage, like the ones they used to build for the tools, and Georgia pulled the reins.

"This is it,madam, welcome to our mansion. Don't feel overwhelmed for its looking, we're modest", Georgia laughed.

Pangled laughed too, as he entered and greeted someone.

"Does anybody else live... _here_?" Lux asked, trying no to sound rude.

"Well, there's not a hundred of us, but yes, we're trying to make a home of it." Georgia smiled, helping her carrying her things inside.

"Just one thing" he softly grabbed her arm before she got in, "Please don't make questions, none of us want to speak a lot lately. If you want I can explain to you tomorrow, but just about me. I beg you, keep quiet tonight and everybody will be nice to you."

"OK, no problem, I just want to sleep".

But she actually craved for a plentiful, hot meal in that minute. When she got in the tiny hut it smelled fine, like boiling potatoes and some vegetables, but all those faces staring at her scared her a bit.

"Goodnight gentlemen", she articulated awkwardly. "I hope I don't disturb your meal".

One of the four men inside, a extremely thin one, stood up and offered her a stool.

"Forgive my fellas, they don't know how to behave with a lady. Now we'll lie the table and sit like the gentlemen you suppose we are".

"It's fine, thank you very much", she replied

Georgia took the preys he had hunted that evening, cleaned them fast and put them in the boiling pot while keeping an eye on the man.

"My name is _Budger_ , by the way. Long story."

'Fine, so you're all deserters or criminals. I suddenly feel blessed', she screamed internally.

The dinner went fine, and most of the 7 people inside filled their stomachs, or drank so much that they didn't give a damn about it. They all talked and laughed and it was much more comfortable than Lux thought it would be... because nobody mentioned their lives, at all. They spoke about the weather, the cold, the inches or feet of snow they had seen that winter, without mentioning where. And of course, very quietly. Lux didn't need any explanations, she was used to share meals and working hours with rude men, and even at home, surrounded by her family, she had learned to be discrete and not messing in other people's business.

The only one who kept absolute silence was Georgia. He only smiled sometimes, sitting beside her without grazing her body, but always tense and ready to protect her, or so she felt like. When the meal was finished, and the pot clean as the day it was forged, Georgia got up and picked an old sort of guitar, fixed and rearranged a hundred times, and started tuning it and playing at the same time. He looked at her childishly, as asking for a petition.

She replied gladly "Play anything you like, I've only know some lullabies from my mom and some gross songs drunk men sing", and she laughed.

He started with a tune he had been working on lately, as he told her, and all of them liked and enjoyed it for a bit, forgetting all the misery that surrounded the scene... Until Georgia suddenly stopped and put the guitar away, and everyone went to sleep. That was how abruptly ended all.

Lux picked her things and looked for any place to sleep, any point on the floor with not many men around, and Pangle saw her as he had seen many defenseless animals, and also women those days. He pointed at a door at the corner, and guided her inside. It was a coarse bedroom with a surprisingly soft bed, and male clothes that Georgia, who had gone earlier, was diligently taking away.

"So this is the royal suite, that we take in turns every night, but as you're staying just for tonight, we've decided you can take it so you know what luxury means", he said, joking as he always did.

He touched his hat (he had not taken it off, and it was starting to annoy her), and said goodnight.

She sat on the bed and looked at the door.

'I won't sleep here, I can't', she thought, nervous.

She felt thankful for having a warm place for the night and the supper had been nice, but she just couldn't bear staying for longer. Where had all those men come from? She had heard of deserters escaping and hiding, but she thought the Guard would have trapped them all quickly, anybody could find that place easily. Also, Were they other kind of outlaws? Had they come together? They didn't even seem friends with each other, like they just met and protected themselves in the group for a short time...

And she realized she had trusted Georgia like a teenager, for no reason... stupid girl... she held back her tears by touching her knife inside her pocket, as a talisman. She knew how to use it, for sure. She indeed had used it. She also had something to hide. And she knew her sister didn't want her back anyway. That's why she had packed such a big luggage. She didn't want to go back, although she had no choice...

Someone knocked on the door, and she pulled the knife out of its leather case. "Who is there?"

"It's me, the butler"

She laughed, that guy was actually fun. She opened the door and regret it for a moment. Georgia had a big rake in his hands and handed it to her. Then he got inside to show her how to use it.

"Look, you can lock the door easily putting one end here, where you have a hook... and the other end on that one on the other part of the wall. See?"

"Thank you very much, I need it."

"Of course you do. I don't want to scare you but... I don't trust these guys at all. I've only known them for some weeks, and... Well, I've said too much already. Sleep tight and careful with the creepers."

"Same for you".

"Right".

"Right".

Georgia whispered with a smirk "I don't know if you have noticed, but I won't leave unless you tell me to", and he started playing with her braid.

She opened her eyes wide and went blank. Despite trying to be firm and polite at the same time, she just managed to mutter

"Leave".

He shrugged his shoulders.

"Fine, I was expecting that anyway".

He left the room and she locked the door, biting her tongue so hard it bled a bit.


End file.
